An innovative government partnership has been announced with green energy institute Masdar to improve food security in the UAE for future generations.
The link-up between Masdar and the UAE Office for Future Food Security will focus on two major initiatives - a vertical farming container pilot project and a smart home farm.
The vertical farming container programme will see a pilot facility established in Masdar City, where the latest technologies and best practices in controlled environment farming will be tested.
"This strategic partnership is the cornerstone of achieving future food security objectives – an important step in activating plans to meet the challenges of this vital cause and invest in its opportunities,” said Mariam Almheiri, Minister of State for Future Food Security.
“Masdar was a natural partner, given its experience working in sustainability through tangible projects in Masdar City and their renewable energy assets globally.
“It signifies an important step towards advancing innovations in agricultural production mechanisms and sustainable solutions to the challenges facing the agriculture industry in the UAE.”
The project will also contribute to defining the business and regulatory guidelines for the development of vertical farming in the country.
The smart home sarm is an initiative to be developed in connection with Masdar City’s Eco-Villa, conceived as a template for affordable, highly energy and water-efficient residential villas in the UAE.
It will help showcase emerging sustainable home and urban farming technologies and solutions from local and international suppliers.
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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